July 6: Sanctions regime key to Iran talks
The American portion of the sanctions regime against Iran is so complex, experts are pointing out that it will take more than a simple signature from U.S. President Barack Obama to get the process started.
The U.S. is party to the United Nations sanctions, the White House has imposed sanctions, the U.S. Congress has imposed sanctions, and even local American states have imposed sanctions against Iran.
Our U.S. correspondent Priscilla Huff reports,
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With a complex sanctions regime imposed against Iran more than three decades in the making, questions are being asked about how and where the U.S. government would start in lifting the orders and statutes:
Richard Sawaya, is the Vice President, National Foreign Trade Council
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"The US sanctions, due to the peculiarities of our system are both executive and legislative and the sanctions that govern US companies headquartered in the US are not nuclear related. So the prospects for, if you will, parity in the case of success in the case of sanctions relief, the prospects for competitive parity between US based companies and their European and Asian counterparts, or competition, are not good."
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Some of the most punishing sanctions imposed by the U.S. against Iran stretch back two decades and are intended to punish Iran for what the US sees as its role as a state sponsor of terrorism.
And there are layers of sanctions - those imposed by the White house by executive order, Congressional sanctions passed fully into law and even sanctions calling for divestment imposed by some of America's 50 states.
George Perkovich, is the Vice President for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
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"I think the way that the United States does sanctions can become a huge strategic problem that we're not addressing. And it comes in a number of ways. The idea of sanctions first of all, or the threat of sanctions is to deter somebody from doing something you don't want them to do. Then you do it, you sanction them. The logic means when you stop doing it you un-sanction them. You take the sanctions off. Except Congress is very good at putting sanctions on countries that they've never been to, never intend to go, but they don't take them off."
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The U.S. Congress has further complicated matters by insisting on a 30 to 60 day reivew of the lifting sanctions imposed by the Executive Branch - the White House.
During that time, President Obama's hands would essentially be tied...and Trade expert Richard Sawaya says that's not how its supposed to work:
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"Since sanctions are a tool of foreign policy at best and the administration conducts foreign policy, it should be the case that, it's all very well for Congress to recommend a menu of sanctions, but not to mandate or put into statute that they be enacted. Rather that they be left permissive so that the executive branch can act accordingly as events dictate."
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Even with a deal worked out in Vienna on the major international issues, some smaller sanctions regimes - such as those imposed by individual American states - would remain.
George Perkovich, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
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"I don't think the state sanctions complicate the negotiations in the sense that what Iran really cares about first of all are the UN authorized sanctions which were rather global. And then in particular, the banking sanctions and the other financial sanctions which are really national sanctions where the US Treasury can really penalize banks and other which trade with Iran. So the state level sanctions won't really effect all of that, it's more about state pension funds investing in companies that do business with Iran. That's noise in the system for the Iranians."
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At the same time
U.S. President Barack Obama seems comfortable with a complicated timetable for lifting sanctions against Iran, saying he thinks relief should be phased in.
While key Congressional lawmakers frankly say, the message should be much stronger,
that the U.S.
will never lift sanctions or the arms embargo until Tehran abandons its nuclear weapons ambitions and support for terrorists."
Priscilla Huff, Washington
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